Re: Issaries, Inc. on photocopying

From: Robert McArthur <mcarthur_at_dstc.edu.au>
Date: Tue, 23 Feb 1999 12:15:20 +1000


OK, I'll bite at last...
I'll say, to put people off guard (:-), that I _mostly_ agree with Brian Tickler, from what little I know and have read about the GTA. OK, that should put in a particular bucket for everyone.

David Dunham wrote:
>
> Here is the official word on photocopying:
- -.
> (And my personal, unofficial words: photocopying portions means things like
> player handouts, maps, etc. -- not "all but page 36 which is a full page
> Dave Dobyski illo." The chance of reprints is a major reason why it's not
> OK to copy out of print works -- the viability of this goes down the more
> unauthorized copies are out there.)

<strong type=emotion>
Given, IMVHO, that such swapping has kept RQ and Glorantha alive for far longer than anyone, even a Asrelian with Raw Greed, would have guessed; and that, apart from reprinting half of "new works" with old material (suitably "remastered") such as RoC and Trollpack, and the fanzines, we have seen nothing of low cost reprints. I mention the low cost because all the work on such items has been done (apart from figuring out the copyright and paying lawyers!). The fans over the last ten years, after RQ3 obviously wasn't going to be huge, could have done with less gloss and some older reprints (as well as Sun County, etc.!)

So, I think that the "don't photocopy because we may want to reprint it someday and we don't think you'll buy it if you've photocopied it" is unadulterated ####. Explain that we'll be drawn and quartered in the courts for doing it , tell us that Llankhor Mhy will burn out our brains, etc. But don't come that <wild words filled with expletives deleted>.
</strong>

Robert
PS. I also believe that this list has kept RQ/Glorantha alive as well. However, I also believe that there are quite a few people playing RQ that do *not* subscribe/read this list - or there were anyway :-(


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